Whether you’re a history buff or not and whether you’re a fan of Jose Rizal or not – chances are you and I both went through the same Philippine History subject. If you’re a Filipino who wants to revisit history, the Rizal Shrine in Dapitan is a good start. You can enter the shrine for free.
If you’re not so familiar (maybe you’re not from the country), Jose Rizal is the national hero of the Philippines and on July 17, 1892, he was sent to Dapitan as a prisoner where he was in exile for four years.
Even though he was a prisoner, he was able to do a lot of things and this blog space won’t be enough to retell the rich history associated with him.
A year ago, before we headed to Dakak (our beach destination), my friends and I visited Rizal Shrine in Dapitan City.
It was a very quiet and serene place void of technology and social media. A huge place surrounded by trees and plants, I would have loved to just stay there. It’s a great place to meditate and maybe do yoga.
Rizal Shrine reflects the diligent lifestyle led by Rizal through the rebuilt structures of his nipa hut residence, hospital, dormitory, dam, and waterworks.
We first went to the museum. Walking inside was a bit eerie and even though I wanted to talk it all in, my friends walked too fast and I wanted to catch up right away. (Lol, blame the friends).
Mother’s Revenge and Buglay – these sculptures of Rizal, albeit replicas, were on display
Below are Rizal’s clothes. Brown wool vest with 3 pockets and 6 button holes in the front, plain brown cloth at the back, and cream clothing linings. From what I’ve known, these are original.
I also ran into Rizal’s photos and his code of ethics.
After the museum, we then headed outside to see his house and other infrastructures which were mostly reconstructed.
Below you can see Rizal’s dam and waterworks which are still original. Amazing, right?
One of my favorites was the Mi Retiro Rock. This is not a replica so just standing there felt ‘historic’ – it’s nice to know you’re standing on what used to be a part of Rizal’s life once.
We were only there for an hour or less and it was scorching hot because it was noon time but the trees around made the heat very bearable.
That’s about it for our short excursion. Hope you can visit the shrine too!
